The Sun Will Shine On Us Again
by SilverEyes0310
Summary: Sometimes the future is what you make it, the present can be what you want it to be, if only you're brave enough to change the past. ALTERNATIVE ENDGAME
1. Intro

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters mentioned in this story, nor do I own the Avengers storyline. I'm just having some fun with it while waiting for the last movie to come out.**

 **Also, I miss Loki… okay?**

 _This is the intro to a little idea I had with all the theories about time-travel going around. Like I said, this is just me having a little fun. You guys can decide how far this goes and how the story progresses. If you want me to include things, be sure to let me know!_

Of course she went with them, although it scared her more than she could put into words. Walking into your own history was dangerous, you might chance things you didn't want changed. That's why they asked her. She had never been near any of them during the big events. Her only connection to the Avengers was that she had been Clint's (or she guessed she had to call him Hawkeye now… ) neighbour. Well, she was his closest neighbour. Their house was quite a distance away from everything else. She used to babysit for them. Actually, she had been with the kids when… well, you know. The look on his face, when he had stormed into the house later, had haunted her for months. She had tried to talk to him but he couldn't be reached. He just sat there and stared and then he had left.

She had gone home to find the house empty and she had cried and raged and cried some more because whatever had happened, it was so unfair. The kids, Clint's wife, her father… half the people on earth some sources said, wiped out. How was that even possible?

She needed to know. What? Everything! She needed to know everything. So, she used what little skill she had and hacked her way to that everything. It was surprisingly easy, or was she just getting better at it as time went by? Maybe there simply wasn't anyone left to keep her out.

She learned about the fight and who had been there, who made it out and who didn't. And then one day she found him again. Clint, or Ronin as he called himself, seemingly gone mad. Seeking revenge. No doubt trying to fill the hole that losing his family had created. She understood, she had tried to fill that hole with information, he tried filling it by killing bad guys. Same difference, she guessed, in a way.

Contacting Natasha had been tricky. Apparently, some places were still near impossible to get into, but she had been honing her hacking skills… it was all she did every day… so it was more a matter of time before she got a message through. The Black Widow had appeared outside her door the same day. A man called Bruce was with her. He asked her if she would consider joining them. They were trying to make things right.

How could she say no? There was nothing for her in that house. And any possibility to give Clint his family back and for herself to see her father again meant she never really thought twice about the proposal. She packed up her things and went with him.

Plans had been made. Risks would have to be taken. Details changed, history altered. All to change their present. They asked her to go and she said yes. She was, after all, 'their only hope' as they sugar coated it so nicely. She didn't really mind. Of course they tried to sweeten up the deal. Who in their right mind would willingly step into the quantum realm?

That's where they were now. Scott and Bruce had built a sort of ship that could carry all five of them. Bruce, Scott, Tony, Steve and herself. Thor and Natasha had stayed at the base. Nat to look after Clint and Thor because he couldn't be allowed to step on his own timeline.

You see, they had come up with this plan, or rather they had decided steps needed to be taken to make sure everything turned out okay. Tony told them how Stephen Strange had been sure this was "the only way". So there had to be something they were missing. Then one day, she had been trying to cheer Thor up and she had said what her father always told her whenever she had a bad day. "No matter how dark the night gets, the sun will shine on us again." And he had completely broken down.

After the questioning, again and again, they had finally accepted that she was not, in fact, Thor's brother. Apparently, Loki was rather good at illusions. It was Clint who eventually vouched for her. The others believed him and in turn also believed her. That Loki had said those exact words to Thor right before he died couldn't have been a coincidence. And on top of that, after this revelation, no one had any doubt that the God of Mischief was still alive. He was out there, somewhere. That would be the other challenge for the ones who remained. They would try and find him.

As for Alice and the others. They were going to make sure everything happened the way it was supposed to. And that meant, that she was going to have to push a certain God in the right direction.

 **More to come soon!**


	2. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters mentioned in this story, nor do I own the Avengers storyline. I'm just having some fun with it while waiting for the last movie to come out.**

 **Also, I miss Loki… okay?**

 _This is a little idea I had with all the theories about time-travel going around. Like I said, this is just me having a little fun. You guys can decide how far this goes and how the story progresses. If you want me to include things, be sure to let me know! The first real chapter is up! I hope you like it._

It was going to be a balancing act. She was only allowed to tell him the bare minimum. Thor had warned her that his brother was extremely smart and would try to manipulate her into telling him more. "Sure, but I'm just as smart! I won't fall for his tricks." She replied. Thor had sighed. "Many have thought the exact same thing and have been tricked anyway." Then a small smile worked its way round his lips and he had added, "I count myself among the tricked."

They had prepared a timeline, a list of moments where they knew his location. Thor had given them a lot of information but got quieter as they went along. Afterwards, Alice had followed him out of the room and outside onto the terrace.

"Are you okay?" she asked him.

"I miss him terribly. We haven't seen eye to eye much lately and just as things were better between us, Thanos took him away. Or at least that's what I thought."

"You say you didn't see eye to eye lately. Was there a time where you did?"

"There was a before, I guess." He said, staring off into the distance. "That means there must be an after too. Everything changed that day we went to Jotunheim."

"What happened?"

"He found out he was Jotun himself. It changed him. You must understand, we hated the Jotuns, we were raised believing they were monsters."

"Poor him."

Thor nodded.

"His world came crashing down around him and I wasn't there for him. I have failed him so many times. It took me a while to see it but I do now."

"I'm sure you didn't mean to…" she said, suddenly feeling awkward sitting next to this man, this god. He was a thousand times more powerful than she was but she guessed that didn't matter when it came to grief.

"Oh I was a complete idiot for a long time." He said and even smiled at her. "Through it all, I always saw him as my brother." Then the smile disappeared again and a troubled look slid over his face. "Why hasn't he come? He must know I'm here."

"I'm sure he has his reasons. Maybe he's stuck somewhere? Maybe he's waiting to be found?"

Thor nodded.

"You'll find him." She assured him again and put her hand on his arm. "I'm sure you will."

.

Together, they had come up with another moment to add to the list. The first encounter. Thor wanted her to meet his brother before their trip to Jotunheim.

"You'll see him the way I see him. Before all the madness." He said with that soft look in his eyes, the one she had noticed again and again whenever he talked about his brother. "I think it will be better if he has seen you before. I'm not sure you'd be able to reach him otherwise."

It was only fair, of course, to give Prince Loki a chance to prove himself. The others didn't like him very much and honestly, she couldn't blame them. After everything they had told her about him and the million ways in which they had warned her to keep her guard up, she wasn't too sure she liked him herself.

But then, just before they had left, Bruce had taken her aside and had confided in her. That he had seen Loki when he was on Sakaar and afterwards when they had evacuated most of Asgard, and that the god had seemed more balanced. "Not as crazy as he did when he came to New York." Were his exact words.

"Things happened to that guy," he had continued, "bad things, things we cannot imagine."

Alice guessed she'd find out what those things were soon enough.

.

She was jolted out of her thoughts and looked over to Scott who was trying to keep them from crashing into… something. This whole quantum realm was unlike anything she'd ever seen before and every time she looked out the window, she had to keep herself from freaking out. Losing herself in her thoughts was much better, although she couldn't keep going over her lines much longer. She had imagined every possible scenario and thought up every possible response to every possible question. If she kept going much longer, that would be the thing to drive her insane instead of the realm.

"Almost there." She heard Scott mutter and she felt a flutter of excitement.

It was more a way to pass the time, than because it was necessary, when she checked her suit for the final time. She had checked it at least fifty times already. It was a beautiful design and made her feel more confident than she actually was. The material fitted her perfectly. So perfectly in fact that she had caught Steve blushing when she'd walked into the room to show it off. Most of it was black with some golden and green details thrown in.

"Loki will like those." Thor had said, pointing at the stripes on her shoulders and sides and he had given her one of his sad smiles. That guy… she wanted nothing more than to see him happy.

Now that the moment of their meeting drew closer, she hoped he was right. She was going to need every bit of help she could get to pull this off.

"This is it." Scott announced, and Bruce turned towards her.

"Ready?" he asked.

She nodded but her answer got stuck in her throat and she swallowed it away.

It was all down to her. So… no pressure, right?

She hiccupped a laugh but quickly composed herself. She didn't want them to start doubting her now. In the reflection of the windows she saw Tony raise an eyebrow.

"I'm fine, it's fine." She tried to reassure them but it sounded forced even to her own ears.

"You will be. And it will be." Steve said. "because it's already happened, remember? You only have to let it happen again. It's meant to be."

"You make it sound so easy." She replied.

"Okay," Scott said as he stood up. The ship had stopped and he walked over to her. "Remember, we'll be right here the whole time. You can get out of there whenever you need to. We'll catch you."

She nodded. "I'm ready."

"Well, good luck then." He said and looked at the others.

"I don't need luck." She whispered, "I need a miracle." and with that she pushed the button.

.

She was in a hallway. An empty hallway. It wouldn't be empty for long though judging by the voices that were coming her way. She spotted a tapestry and decided to do the obvious thing… hide behind it. It always worked in the movies, so it would do just as well for her.

As the voices passed by her, she snuck a glance from behind the fabric and saw that it was none other than her intended target himself. In fact, there were two princes walking through the corridor. Thor was with him too. Long-haired Thor, who was acting very cocky. She remembered how he had told her what an idiot he had been. She had to agree, he looked the idiot part.

She stepped back into the hallway when she could no longer hear their voices. Now that she was here, she had to get him alone as soon as possible. The more time passed, the bigger the chances that other people found her and that things got complicated.

She jumped at the couch behind her and turned around.

"Are you lost?" the prince on the other side of the hallway asked her, tilting his head to the side slightly, seizing her up.

"Actually," she answered, making herself as tall as possible, "I was looking for you."

 ** _TBC_**


	3. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters mentioned in this story, nor do I own the Avengers storyline. I'm just having some fun with it while waiting for the last movie to come out.**

 _Aaaaaaah, here we_ go...

.

.

He stared at her for a second, clearly confused.

"Who are you?" he then asked.

She knew the answer to that question. "I am no one."

"Clearly, because that's not how you address a Prince of Asgard." he said raising an eyebrow.

She felt the need to back down but pushed against it. Thor had told her to stand tall and not let him bully her into submission.

So, she was going to kick his ass! And hopefully not get trapped in her words by this Silvertongue.

" _Clearly_ , I'm not from around here. So, you're not _my_ Prince." she said defiantly.

.

"ah," he answered and smiled. "then where are you from?"

She knew the question to this one too.

"Nowhere."

"Of course..."

"I have a message for you."

"For me? Who is it from? No, let me guess..." he said, his sentence trailing off.

"No one." they said in unison.

.

And she tried, she tried so hard not to laugh but when she looked him in the eye, there was a twinkle there and she just couldn't help herself.

"So do you want to hear the message or not?" she asked, still laughing.

"It depends."

"On what?"

"On how important it is."

This sobered her up a bit. "it's extremely important."

"life and death important?"

He must have noticed the colour draining from her face because he took a step towards her.

Confusion showed on his face again when she took a step back at the same time.

"I apologize," he said, "this has been a very strange conversation."

Alice swallowed away the emotions and looked him in the eye again.

"I wish I could tell you everything, but I can't, I'm simply not allowed."

"Allowed by who? Oh wait, I see. It's my brother, isn't it? Is this a payback prank for yesterday?" He said but he looked unsure.

"No prank, Loki. Just a message, a very important one."

"You said that already. Go ahead then."

.

She realised how stupid she would sound now after everything they had said and the route this conversation had taken.

But it had to be done.

"The message is as followed. _No matter how dark the night, the sun will shine on us again."_

She wasn't supposed to add the first part. It wasn't in the script. Did it matter? Would it matter?

The silence that followed was deafening.

.

"That's it?" he finally asked.

She nodded, forcing herself to look back up to him.

"Who are you?" he asked again.

"No one."

"Stop it. You will tell me." he took another step and this time she stayed where she was.

"I can't, I'm sorry but I can't." she answered. He was standing so close. If he gave any sign he was going to hurt her, she could always push the exit button.

But no such sign came. He just stood there, looking down at her, like he was trying to figure her out.

She should leave, but something was still keeping her there.

"There are dark times ahead, Loki, Prince of Asgard, Odinson." Her brain was screaming at her to stop talking but she couldn't.

"Is that a threat?" he asked her, eyes narrowing. "or another one of your messages?"

"Simply the truth. And I wish it wasn't, I wish things could be different for you. Just know that you will see me again. And hang in there."

.

He was now looking at her as if she was insane.

"You are speaking nonsense. I demand to know who sent you."

"You can demand all you want. I can't tell you. I already said too much."

And then she took his hand in hers. "Just remember the message and know that I mean well."

After staring at their hands for a second he replied. "If you've already said too much, some more can't possibly hurt. Tell me one more thing."

"I…"

"Your name at least." He interrupted her.

Her name. She tried to think of a way in which him knowing her name would be bad. Maybe Stephen Strange would have found a way but she couldn't.

"Okay." She said, letting go of his hand.

"Okay?" He echoed.

"Alice, my name is Alice."

"That doesn't sound Asgardian."

"I told you I'm not from here, don't go overanalysing it." She said as she walked away from him.

.

"Where are you going?" he called after her.

"Away." She replied, taking another two steps and then turning around to face him.

"You can't leave yet!"

"Actually, I can." She put her hands behind her back so he wouldn't see her push the button on her wrist. "But we'll meet again. You like magic, right? Well, I have a trick for you. Now you see me…" and then she was gone.

Loki was left alone in the hallway, wondering what the hell just happened.

 **TBC**

 **P.S. please let me know what you think and what you'd like to see.**


	4. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters mentioned in this story, nor do I own the Avengers storyline. I'm just having some fun with it while waiting for the last movie to come out.**

 _Moving on nicely ;)_

 _._

They caught her and pulled her back into the ship. Her helmet disappearing the moment she came on board. Her heart was racing and she was extremely dizzy but it had worked. She had made it back safely.

It had been the part they were most nervous about, skipping back and forth between realms and trying to end up in the exact same spot she had left. More or less anyway because the 'exact' same spot was pretty much impossible. As soon as she would move, things would change and of course, time was always changing. But Scott had been sure he would be able to find her again.

Bruce made sure to look her over and declared that she seemed perfectly fine.

"So?" Tony asked, after having shifted impatiently, "how did it go?"

"It all went according to plan." she answered, "I found him almost immediately, gave him the message, he wanted to know more, I told him nothing, I left..." she shrugged. "Easy peasy."

"That means we're good to move on to the next spot?" Scott called from behind the controls.

"I guess so." she said.

As she moved to take her seat and strap herself in for the ride, she couldn't help but wonder what would happen to Loki in the meantime. She knew she wouldn't find him in a good place. He wouldn't be the same person, which was sad as he'd been rather nice. Sure, he obviously liked to act according to his status but they had been able to have a semi-normal conversation. She wished she could have gotten to know him better in the before. But as they raced through the quantum realm, she knew those dark times were catching up with him.

.

She opened her eyes and it took her a moment to get used to the darkness. Where even was she? Moments before, she had left the ship. Scott had been sure they were at the right spot but now, she wasn't so sure. ' _if only I had some light or some way to orientate myself._ ' she thought and as the words flew through her mind, some lights came on.

"Well, well, well. It seems third time really is the charm." A voice said behind her. A voice she recognized as the man she was looking for. Once again, he had found her first.

She turned around to face him. "You don't look very charming." was her reply. And it was true. Loki was standing at the top a set of stairs leading to another floor of what seemed to be an abandoned factory building. Even from this distance Alice could see that he was in bad shape. He was trying to hide it of course but she knew where to look. He wasn't standing as tall and there was a weariness in his face that made her feel sorry for him. ' _What happened to you?_ ' she wondered.

She started walking towards him, trying to take control of the situation. "You remember me?" she asked. "You remember my message?"

"Of course, I remember you and as for your 'message', keep it."

She stopped at the bottom of the stairs. "What do you mean 'keep it'?"

He smiled a cruel smile. "there will be no sun, darkness is fine by me. It's what you deserve."

"Excuse me?" she exclaimed.

"Humanity. You're one of them, aren't you? Alice. Such a wonderful name. This will be no wonderland."

She couldn't help but laugh. "Wait, while you're trying to take over the world, you stopped to read Alice in Wonderland?"

He ignored her. "Why are you here? I told you not to come. You're not trying to stop me, are you? I can assure you, your efforts would be futile."

And then it clicked for her. _Third time's the charm. I told you not to come._ He had seen her in the meantime, but she hadn't actually gone there yet. Their timeline was faulty. She was missing a meeting point.

"I'm not here to try and stop you." she replied, trying not to include too many details. He'd see through her any minute now.

"Then why?"

"I'm here to give you a message." she tried.

"I don't want it. Not from you. You are nothing."

"I told you that the first time we met, remember. That I was no one." she tried again. Anything to get through to him, although she knew it was hopeless. She had known that even before she came here. The others had warned her that he wouldn't listen to her. The only reason she was here was so that he would see her, before they moved on to their next point. To get him to remember her.

"Go away." he said, turning around.

"What? You're not even going to kill me?" she asked, pushing his buttons.

"Do you want me to?" he said with his back to her.

"Not really but it would be something at least. Why won't you talk to me, Loki?"

"What would be the point of that? You tell lies and I'm over them. You are nothing and I'm going to rule this planet. I have more important things to do than to stand here and talk to you."

"Then leave..." she said.

He turned around instead and the look on his face felt like a dagger cutting into her heart. There was rage burning in his eyes.

"Why did you lie? I thought you were on my side, but you are just like everyone else."

What to do? What to say? This balancing act sucked. How much could the truth hurt? How far could she go before she said to much.

She decided to just go with it. "Alright, what did I lie about then, in your opinion?"

"That my family cared for one... they don't, they even threw me into the void, that's how little they cared."

She knew better of course but decided that now he was talking, she had to try and keep him going.

"What else?"

For a second she thought he wouldn't continue but apparently he was so angry, he just couldn't help himself.

"The part where you pretended that it was all going to be fine. I am a monster, or I was. At least that's been taken care off."

"What happened to you, Loki. What did they do to you?"

"Do to me? They saved me! My life has purpose now!" when she didn't reply, he added, "I don't expect _you_ to understand."

She shook her head and took a couple of steps back. "Okay, Loki. The message still counts. It will get better. Even though you don't want to hear it, even though you don't believe me. It will get better. Just hang in there."

He started to interrupt her but she quickly continued, "I'm here for _you._ I'm only here to see _you_. And we will see each other again. Once this whole mess is over. I'll find you again."

Loki now looked like he was about to explode in anger, so Alice thought it was time for her to leave. She put her hands behind her back. "And your brother really does care about you. Never forget." was the last thing she said.

A frustrated scream filled the empty factory.

 **TBC**


	5. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters mentioned in this story, nor do I own the Avengers storyline. I'm just having some fun with it while waiting for the last movie to come out.**

 _I'm writing this story down rather quickly so I apologize if you come across any mistakes. I hope you're still enjoying yourself. (Suggestions are always welcome!)_

 _._

"We have a problem." Alice said as soon as she entered the ship. Then a wave of dizziness washed over her and she stumbled into Steve who, gentleman as he is, caught her without hesitation. "Are you okay?" he asked her.

"I'm fine, I'm fine." She said, pushing him away and walked over to Scott who had a list of times and locations in front of him.

"We're missing a meeting point."

Scott looked up at her in confusion. "What do you mean?"

"In between the first and this one, there has to be another meeting point. According to Loki, this was the third time he saw me." She explained what he had said and how there were only two locations she could think of.

"One has to be soon after he finds out he's a frost-giant. Thor wasn't there, he was on earth, maybe that's why he didn't include it in the list but it's a pivotal moment. The other would mean figuring out where he went after he fell of the bridge."

"That's impossible." Scott interjected immediately, "I need data to find that moment, no one knows where he went and how long he was there for. There's no way I can get you there."

Alice cursed silently. That meant she wouldn't be able to find out what had happened to him. It seemed more important than him finding out his true roots but then again, going back to Asgard would give her the opportunity to talk to him again before he was tortured and brainwashed.

"That means there's only one possible point to go to." Tony concluded. "Let's get a move on."

As Alice strapped herself back into her chair, Bruce leaned over to her. "Are you sure you're okay?" he asked, looking concerned.

"Time-travel is complicated." She replied with a small smile.

"Be careful," he added, "we're creating the past but we can just as easily break it."

She nodded and let her head fall back against her seat as the ship started moving. Although she'd never tell the others, she was already exhausted. Time-travel really wasn't as easy as it seemed.

.

The palace was silent around her. She had marked the spot she had arrived in and started wandering around. There was no one and the silence was creeping her out. That it was night meant that most of them would be in bed anyway, but she had assumed there would at least be some guards around…

Eventually she found herself walking into what appeared to be the throne room. The giant throne gave it away, really. And in that throne, there was Loki. He was slumped sideways and was resting his head in his hands. When he heard her footsteps he quickly sat up.

"You again?" he asked. "What do you want now?"

"Hello, Loki." She said, ignoring his question. "I see you made a promotion." She looked around in mock awe as she walked over to him. He looked healthy, but tired.

"Oh this…?" he spread his arms, "it's only temporary, until Odin wakes up that is."

"I thought you'd be happier, you're king now. Is you sitting here in the middle of the night just making the most of it before it's over? Or is something troubling you?"

"I'm not king, though I should be."

"I think you'd make a great king."

He raised an eyebrow. "Thank you…"

"Is there anything you want to talk about? Anything you want off your chest?" she asked.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, there has to be a reason you're miserable even though you seem to have everything you've ever wanted. Thor's out of the picture, Odin's in a coma, you're on the throne of Asgard… So, what's wrong?"

"How do you know all of this?" He asked, standing up and laying the spear across his seat.

"Stop answering my question with your questions."

He sighed and walked down the steps to meet her at the bottom.

"Odin won't stay asleep and when he wakes, he'll want to get rid of me."

"Why's that?"

"Oh, is there finally something you don't know?" he asked mockingly, "I thought you knew everything…"

"If you're referring to the fact that you're adopted and were born on Jotunheim then, yes I did know that."

He stopped dead in his tracks and stared at her for a moment.

"Why are you here?" he asked her again. "Why would you come when you know what I am?"

"Whether you're a god or a frost-giant or a combination of the two, it doesn't matter."

"OF COURSE IT MATTERS!" he yelled. "IT MATTERS TO ME!"

She could kick herself. "I meant it doesn't matter to _me_ , Loki." She moved towards him and put a hand on his arm. "I couldn't care less."

"I'm a monster." He whispered, "you should care."

She took a deep breath, smiled at him and said: "No one is born a monster. The colour of your skin, the blood that runs through your veins, doesn't make you a monster. It's the choices you make. Those are what counts."

"Easy for you to say," he answered, shaking his head.

"You don't believe me?"

"I don't."

"You think I'd abandon you?"

"Yes."

"I would never." She said, "I promise."

He looked her in the eye then. "Don't make promises you can't keep."

"I…"

"Look at me." He said, and his skin slowly turned blue. "This is what I truly look like. You should know before you make those kind of promises."

She looked at him, really looked and he was glorious. She could say, without any doubt, that he was the single most amazing thing she had ever seen. Before she could think she reached out a hand to touch his cheek, but he caught her fingers in his hand. She was jolted out of her thoughts by a burning pain and pulled her hand away from his.

"Shit!" she cursed as she saw that part of her glove was gone and her fingers were on the verge of blistering.

"I am so sorry." Loki said, stumbling backwards. "I didn't mean for that to happen."

"It's fine. Don't worry. It's fine."

"It's not _fine_!" he continued, almost on the verge of tears. "Here you are, being nice to me. You're the only one, you know, who's actually nice to me. Most of the people here on Asgard hate my guts. The look at me and wished that it was Thor, sitting on the throne. Or anyone else really, anyone but me."

"Please, calm down." She said, her hand still burning. God, it hurt so much. Tears were sliding down her cheeks as she held her wounded hand close to her chest. "just, please, calm down."

The next moment he was standing next to her again. "I'm so sorry."

"I know, I'm not mad at you." She murmured.

"Can I see?" he asked, holding out his own hand. It was only then that she realised he had turned back to his Asgardian look.

She gave him her hand and he examined it. "Why don't you try to control it, instead of pushing it away?" she asked, wiping at her tears with her other hand.

"Because I don't want things like this to happen. I don't want to be the monster parents warn their children about."

"You're not." She answered and bit back another curse as a strange sensation moved across her fingers. It was hot and cold at the same time and she looked down to see a yellow light disappear into her hand. And then the pain was just… gone. So was the redness. He had healed her. "Thank you." She said, turning her hand this way and that way to marvel at his magic.

"I caused it, it's only fair that I fix it too."

She smiled up at him sadly. If only it would be that simple in the future. A thought then sparked in her mind. There were certain things she still needed to say before she left.

"Loki?"

"Yes."

"Do you remember the message? What I said the first time we met?"

"I do. You said ' _No matter how dark the night, the sun will shine on us again._ _'"_

She nodded. "I know you're full of doubt now, but it won't always be that way. I hope that one day, you'll find the strength to accept who you are."

He stepped away from her. "It's not just me who has to accept it."

"That's true, but your family loves you, Loki. Even though it sometimes doesn't feel that way. They are and will always be your family."

"Things have been said that can never be unsaid."

She shrugged. "That's just how it goes. The question is whether you move forward or stand rooted in anger." And taking a couple steps back into the direction she had come from she added. "That choice is yours to make, though. Just don't do anything hastily."

She thought she heard him say 'it's a little late for that.' But chose to ignore it. She had already influenced him enough. It was time for her to leave.

"Will you accompany me to my exit point?" she asked and he immediately nodded and moved to walk with her. They made it almost the entire way in silence and it was Loki who ultimately broke it.

"I know I can't ask this of you, but I wish you would stay a little longer."

She took the last couple of steps and then turned towards him. "I wish I could stay too but I can't." She meant it. Moving forward in time would mean a Loki broken by Thanos, instead of this version. A version, she had to admit, she actually liked. "We will meet again, but I have to go now."

"I know." He said, looking down at his boots, "but you're the only one who treats me like an equal."

She laughed and his gaze snapped back up. Doubt and anger flashing across his face. She immediately apologized. "I'm not laughing at you, it's just… you don't know what you're saying."

"I mean it." He said in confusion. "Everyone here looks down on me."

Alice shook her head. "No, they don't, Loki. And what I meant was that we are _not_ equal." She moved her hands behind her back again as the doubt seeped back into his eyes. "You are and will always be a thousand times better than me." She said and disappeared.

Loki closed his eyes and smiled, feeling somewhat happy for the first time since he had learned the truth. _A thousand times better?_ She couldn't be more wrong.

 **TBC**


	6. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters mentioned in this story, nor do I own the Avengers storyline. I'm just having some fun with it while waiting for the last movie to come out.**

 _Woops, it's been a while. I haven't been able to sit down and write ever since moving two weeks ago. But here's the new chapter and I'll try to keep them coming more steadily from now on._

"What the hell happened to your suit?" Tony demanded the moment he saw her.

"Nothing, just a little accident."

"Did he hurt you?" Bruce asked and started examining her hand.

"I said it's nothing, will you relax?" she answered pulling away.

How could she explain to these men what she had seen. They would never understand. Not for the first time, she wished Thor was here. She wanted desperately to talk to him. To tell him about the Loki she had seen. There was definitely a before and an after but it wasn't before and after he found out he was Jotun. It was before and after he fell into the void.

She needed to know what had happened and since no one but Loki himself would be able to tell her, she decided that she would try and ask him about it in the next meeting point. Which would come soon enough as Scott had already started flying again.

Steve sat down next to her. "What happened, Alice?" he asked and she just knew the others had asked him to talk to her. There was no ignoring him, no being mad at him. He was the nicest guy she'd ever met. She still didn't want to answer him, though.

"Nothing bad, Steve. I'd rather not say but just know, it's all fine. Can't you just take my word for it?"

He glanced over at the others. "They're worried. Can you blame us? We have no idea what's going on and being kept in the dark isn't something we're used to. Most of the time we at least have some inkling of how a mission is progressing. Now, we know nothing. We've been taking your word for it ever since we left. This meeting point wasn't on the list. We've just been wondering what changed."

She was silent for a second. Of course, they wanted to know what was going on, of course Tony wasn't good at being kept in the dark. Maybe she had been a little sparse with the details. "I'm sorry," she said, "I understand. What do you want to know?"

"Where did you go just now?"

"Asgard, after he found out his heritage but before he fell off that bridge."

"Why wasn't it on our list?"

"I don't know."

"Did anything out of the ordinary happen? Did you see anything that seemed off?"

"Not really. I only saw Loki."

Steve paused for a moment. "What happened to your hand?"

She sighed. They were going to freak out on her, she just knew it. She was suddenly very aware of the other pairs of eyes on her. "You know Loki is a frost giant."

He nodded.

"He showed me his frost-giant-form and when I reached out, I don't know, I think I spooked him and he grabbed my hand to stop me."

"He grabbed your hand and your glove was torn off?"

"More like frozen off, I think. My hand got frozen too, it felt like a serious burn." She could feel the collective breath everyone was taking, ready to start yelling at her, so she quickly continued. "He didn't mean to and healed my hand as soon as he found out."

"He healed your hand?" Steve asked but she could feel it wasn't meant as a question and he didn't need her to respond. When she looked him in the eye, she could swear there was something there that hadn't been there before whenever they had discussed Loki in the past. Leave it to Steve to figure out there was something more going on. She knew it too. Saying it all out loud had definitely given her some perspective.

"He healed my hand." She repeated quietly.

* * *

Getting her here had been a challenge. They only had a very limited frame to work with and had to get the timing perfect. Luckily, Thor remembered how the guard shifts worked and together they had finally decided on a specific time. It had to be at night, when most of the other prisoners would be asleep and the guard's check-ups were less frequent.

He was asleep himself when she appeared in his cell but woke easily when she cleared her throat.

"How did you…?" he started but she shushed him. The frustration on his face was priceless.

"I don't have a lot of time, the guards will come back soon."

"Why are you here? Not that message of yours again. I remember, so if that is all you came here to do, consider it said. I do not wish to hear it from your mouth again."

"Good, that gives me more time to talk about other things."

He tilted his head to the right. "What _things_?"

"For example, what happened to you after you fell from the rainbow bridge?"

Was it the lighting or did he go slightly pale?

"I always wonder how you know these things." He replied smoothly.

She shrugged. "Does it really matter? Where did you go after you fell?"

"Does it really matter?" he mirrored.

She wasn't going to back down now. "It does when it's clear that whoever you ended up with nearly broke your mind."

"Does my mind seem broken to you?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Did you forget I saw you in New York? You looked like you could fall apart any second."

"You forget who you're talking to. I've had people disappear for much less."

"Oh please, I know you can handle it, know you're far too intrigued to make me disappear and couldn't get to me even if you wanted to.

It only took him a fraction of a second to appear in front of her, grabbing her arm.

"You were saying?"

He was so close to her. She couldn't waver now.

"Two out of three still means you won't let me disappear."

"But as long as I hold onto you, you can't disappear either or you'd have to take me with you." He replied with a small smile.

She cursed silently. He was right of course. She decided to try and distract him.

"Where did you go when you fell of the bridge?" She said although it came out as a whisper.

"Hell." He answered.

"How did you get out?"

"I was sent to earth."

Well, that wasn't a big surprise.

"Can I trust you?" she looked up to find him staring at her in confusion.

"What do you think?"

"Do you trust me?" she went on.

"Yes." He said without hesitation, "although I should probably be more suspicious of you."

"Are you willing to prove that you trust me?"

"What do you suggest?"

"Close your eyes."

He huffed and raised that eyebrow again.

"See," she said, "I know you didn't trust me."

He sighed. "Fine." And closed his eyes. "Now what."

She couldn't help it, she loved having this control over him.

"Remember," she said, "no matter what happens next that you can always trust me. I will never try to hurt you. I want you to be safe. I will always find you."

Before he could reply or open his eyes, she kissed him. She had meant to just give him a quick peck on the lips but once there she lingered and then the unimaginable happened. He started kissing her back. She shut down her mind before it could start overanalysing the situation, she would have time enough for that later. Right now, she was kissing a god and she let herself enjoy it. Not too much though. She gave him a little push and he took a step back, letting go of her arm.

He stood there, with his eyes closed, waiting for her and she knew she would have to leave right away or she wouldn't be able to make herself go.

She took one last look at him and said in a rush: "You'll see me once more, in a little while."

His eyes shot open and his hand towards her with "No, wait!" on his lips.

But she had already pushed the button and disappeared looking into his eyes.


	7. Chapter 6

_I'm seeing Endgame in two days and I'm starting to have the distinct feeling that the Russo's version isn't going to make me very happy. Can I just have my version please?_

 _._

 _._

 _._

It was sad to think that this was going to be the last stop. She could only hope that their meetings would make a difference for him. Time was a tricky thing. They couldn't just change whatever they wanted to change. The same events had to take place, but they thought they had found a way around it.

Loki was the key.

Alice walked through the crowded corridors of The Grandmaster's hall on Sakaar, trying her best to blend in. Thor hadn't been much help for this location. He was somewhere in the underground battle station, getting geared up to eventually fight Hulk. Something she knew but he didn't… yet. She almost wished she could stay and watch the fight, but knew there wouldn't be time.

As she entered one of the main pre-fight reception areas, she suddenly spotted him. He was entertaining a small audience with his stories. She took a moment to observe him and decided that he looked better, healthier, than last time. A smile on his face and his eyes sparkling as the people around him hung on to his every word. He was in his element. Silver-tongued genius.

It was almost as if he sensed he was being watched. His eyes flicked towards hers. She nodded her head once in greeting and he did the same. After excusing himself, he quickly made his way towards her.

"This is it?" he asked when he reached her, "The last time you come to visit me?"  
He almost sounded sad or was that just her imagining things?

"It is," she nodded, "can I borrow you for a minute? I don't have long."

"Of course." He answered and led her towards a long, and thankfully empty, corridor. It hit her out of the blue, how easy this had become. Yes, she was nervous for the mission but no longer around him. They were walking down this corridor in silence. She knew he was probably waiting for her to speak but she just wanted to savour this moment a little longer. A thought crawled back into her consciousness; one she'd encountered a couple times before: ' _What if I stayed?_ ' but she knew it was impossible. She could only hope this wouldn't really be the last time she got to see him. THAT was the thought that scared her.

She stopped walking.

So did he.

And then they just stood there, in silence, looking at each other until he said: "I haven't forgotten our last meeting."

She cursed her cheeks for heating up but didn't look away. "Neither have I." she answered.

He took a step forwards so he was standing right in front of her but she stopped him with a hand on his chest. "Business first." She said.

"Why?" he smiled, "afraid you'll forget the message?"

"Yes." She said matter-of-factly which caused him to laugh.

"Just when I think I've seen and heard it all, you show up."

She smiled and shrugged. "I don't want to take any risks, it's too important."

"Important for who?"

"The world."

"I don't care about 'the world'" he said, smiling thinly.

"Okay," she replied, "important for me." And looked him straight in the eye, daring him to repeat himself.

He didn't, of course.

"Why?" was the next question.

"Because I would like to see you again someday."

He looked at her with an intense focus. "Am I going to die?"

"I hope not."

"You're from the future, it's how you know everything about me."

"You're very clever. I'd say I'm surprised but, like you just said, I already know you so well."

"Who told you these things? My brother?"

"Yes."

"In your future…" he paused for a second, "I died, didn't I."

"Yes."

"You can't change the past. What's done is done."

"We disagree."

"What happened?"

"Thanos happened."

He turned around and started pacing.

She wasn't supposed to tell him all of this. It had only ever been the original message she could give him. But she couldn't find it in herself to stop. She wanted him to live. She wanted him to succeed.

So, she continued: "I asked you where you went after you fell from the bridge. You said hell but you ended up with Thanos, didn't you? You went to Earth for him, to steal the Tesseract. He had started his gem-collection."

"I was so angry," Loki said, still pacing back and forth, "so hurt. He invaded my mind like it was nothing. I don't like to think about it but I suppose I just let him. He made so many promises, and in my grief, I accepted his word as truth. That sceptre did something to me. It was only afterwards that I realised to what extent I let him use me. I wanted to hurt my brother but…"

"Well, if you want to screw Thanos over, here's your chance."

He turned back towards her. "Let's hear it."

"You will eventually find your way back to Asgard. The Tesseract is there and Thanos wants it. It contains the Space stone. If possible, destroy the stone but keep the Tesseract. When the time comes, Thanos will find you and ask for the cube. He'll be angry when he finds out it's not there. He'll be so angry he'll want to kill you. The question is, can you make him believe he's killing you without it actually being you? I know you're good at illusions."

"Maybe," he murmurs, "I'm not sure if it would fool him but I'll think of a way."

"Thanos will destroy the entire ship. You'll need to get away before he does."

The pacing stopped and he walked back towards her. "Where will you be?"

"I…" she hadn't actually thought about that. The 'her' at the time of the snap didn't know him. "I'll be on Earth, but I don't think it would be a good idea for you to just show up."

He tilted his head to the right. "Why not?"

"I wouldn't have the faintest idea who you are." She explained. She wasn't going to start lying to him now. "That and last time you came to Earth, you weren't exactly the most popular guy. This time-travel stuff will only start making sense after we actually do the time-travel…"

"I understand." He nodded and then he added with a little smile: "I've grown used to waiting for you throughout the years. Now I'll at least know where to find you."

She shook her head, smiling as well. How did they get here? Openly flirting with each other… She could almost forget what a skilled liar he was. Almost.

Nevertheless, it was fun, flirting with him.

"Does that conclude the 'business' part of this conversation?" he asked, his eyes twinkling.

Well, everything had been said. All she could do now was to go home and hope he would be there too. Only, she didn't want to go home. Because what if it didn't work out? What if he was still dead when she got home? He was here now. Standing in front of her. And she couldn't deny that she wanted to kiss him again.

He was still waiting for her answer, giving her time to think it over.

"You need to be back by the time Thor's fight starts." She remembered.

"Plenty of time." He whispered as he softly touched her cheek. "May I kiss you?"

"You may," she answered, trying not to giggle. Who still talked like that? But the thought evaporated as his lips touched hers. As soft as the hand caressing her jawline. She returned the kiss, leaning against him and his other hand snuck around her waist, pulling her to him.

The kiss grew more intense, Loki now kissing her with everything he's got, making her knees go weak. Just before it got too overwhelming, she pulled away.

"I should…, I mean you should…" she started.

"Stay." Loki interrupted her. Or was he finishing her sentence? No, it felt as if he was really pleading with her.

"I can't and you can't."

"Yes, we can."

"But the fight."

"I don't care about the fight."

"Thor saw you there, so you need to be there. There's no choice, we can't take any risks. You need to be there."

"Okay, I'll go." He answered and her stomach dropped. She looked at him then, really looked, taking in as many details as she possibly could. The colour of his eyes. The shape of his lips. The way his hair had gotten slightly messed up by her hands.

"I don't know how to say goodbye." She said, finally looking away.

"I do." He replied, pulling her close and kissing her so gently it made her heart hurt.

When he let her go, he added: "this isn't goodbye, right? We will see each other in your time?"

"I hope so." she wasn't sure what made her do it but her hand decided to reach out and fix his hair.

He smiled at her. A genuine smile. "I believe we will, if I didn't, I wouldn't be able to let you leave. I'm still tempted to drag you onto one of The Grandmaster's ships and fly away."

"Where would we go, though?"

"It wouldn't matter, anywhere would be fine by me."

There was some commotion coming from the end of the corridor. A sure sign that the fight was starting, and people were making their way over to the arena. She swallowed away the sadness.

"Be safe." She whispered as she threw her arms around his neck and held him as close as she possibly could.

"You too." He said, hugging her tightly.

They walked back to the main room, which was almost empty now. Only a couple of people were still getting drinks.

"You know, I'm not usually a patient man, but I'll wait for you." He promised.

"I'll look for you when I get home." She smiled, happy that they were at least pretending to make plans for the future. A very uncertain future. "I will see you soon."

"Soon for you, but quite a while for me, I presume."

"I'm sorry." She said. Trying to calculate how long it would be for him.

"No, don't worry. You're worth every second."

He kissed her one last time, slowly as if he was trying to commit it to memory, which could very well be the case as that was exactly what she was doing too. And then he stepped back.

"I have to go now, or I won't be able to leave." He said, taking another step away from her.

She nodded.

"Please, don't die."

"I will try." He replied before turning around and walking away.

He didn't look back, which was good. Alice would have run to him if he had. Once he was out of sight, she went back to where she had arrived and pushed the exit-button on her suit.

She didn't talk to the others other than telling them the job was done and that she wanted to go home now. No one asked her any questions. As it happened, they were all rather happy to go home. Being stuck on the ship had been driving them crazy. They could all use some fresh air.

In her seat, Alice silently let the tears roll down her face. Because for some reason, she could help but feel like she should have taken him up on the idea of stealing a spaceship and flying away.


End file.
